They say time flies when you’re busy, and that sure seems true this month. I almost missed that this weekend is Memorial Day. This is a thoughtful time and this year I have been thinking about the Victory Gardens of World War II. Victory gardens emerged during World War I and returned during the second World War to feed a nation. According to the National Park Service, by 1945, American Victory Gardeners had grown between 8 and 10 million tons of food, supplying around 40% of the country’s fresh vegetables. After the war ended, victory gardens disappeared and we saw the industrialization of agriculture grow and, of course, the emergence of fast food.
And here we sit now, navigating the health risks of highly processed food, chemicals in our food, wastefulness, a culture of convenience, and a disconnection from nature – more accurately complete ignorance of how and where we source our food. On our farm, we sometimes teach gardening to groups, and we’ve literally had college students who did not know that potatoes grew underground, or what tomatoes looked like on the vine. It was scary and sad. We watched, in awe and surprise, as young adults picked their first grapes, beans, and tomatoes, overwhelmed that they, THEY, had eaten something directly from the earth.
So what might it mean to have a “victory” garden in today’s environment? We don’t need victory gardens to support the asinine war in Iran, we need them to support our health and the health of our kids and community, as well as the earth itself. Your victory garden – real, small, in the backyard, in patio pots, or community gardens – supports the growth of local, healthy food systems; teaches children where their food comes from and how to grow it; helps feed hungry people in our community and reconnects us with the earth.
Past generations planted to support a nation, we can plant small gardens to support the future of our children and planet. Victory over chemical-laden food, victory over soaring prices, and victory over poor eating habits. To be transparent, growing vegetables or fruit might not be as convenient as just stopping by the grocery store on the way home, but watching a child plant beans, eating a ripe tomato from the vine, or sharing extras with a neighbor doesn’t have a price tag. Those moments are truly priceless. A victory garden won’t change the entire world overnight, but it will change your dinner table, change your child’s appreciation of food and nature, and likely your family’s health. If that’s not a victory, I don’t know what is.
Our family has several veterans and, on their behalf, I thank you for honoring Memorial Day. Some of our vets were avid gardeners and would, I’m sure, love to see contemporary victory gardens that support the future health of everyone. After their sacrifices to get us here, the least we can do is take care of ourselves and our community.
